Prenatal pesticide exposure and childhood leukemia - A California statewide case-control study

Andrew S Park; Beate Ritz; Fei Yu; Myles Cockburn; Julia E Heck

doi:10.1016/j.ijheh.2020.113486

Prenatal pesticide exposure and childhood leukemia - A California statewide case-control study

Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2020 May:226:113486. doi: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2020.113486. Epub 2020 Feb 19.

Authors

Andrew S Park¹, Beate Ritz¹, Fei Yu², Myles Cockburn³, Julia E Heck⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, 650 Charles E. Young Dr. S, Box 951772, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1772, USA.
² Department of Biostatistics, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, 650 Charles E. Young Dr. S, Box 951772, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1772, USA.
³ Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 2001, N. Soto Street, Suite 318-A, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
⁴ Department of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, 650 Charles E. Young Dr. S, Box 951772, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1772, USA; Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, Box 951781, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1781, USA. Electronic address: jeheck@ucla.edu.

Abstract

Background: A number of epidemiologic studies with a variety of exposure assessment approaches have implicated pesticides as risk factors for childhood cancers. Here we explore the association of pesticide exposure in pregnancy and early childhood with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) utilizing land use and pesticide use data in a sophisticated GIS tool.

Methods: We identified cancer cases less than 6 years of age from the California Cancer Registry and cancer-free controls from birth certificates. Analyses were restricted to those living in rural areas and born 1998-2011, resulting in 162 cases of childhood leukemia and 9,805 controls. Possible carcinogens were selected from the Environmental Protection Agency's classifications and pesticide use was collected from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation's (CDPR) Pesticide Use Reporting (PUR) system and linked to land-use surveys. Exposures for subjects were assessed using a 4000m buffer around the geocoded residential addresses at birth. Unconditional logistic and hierarchical regression models were used to assess individual pesticide and pesticide class associations.

Results: We observed elevated risks for ALL with exposure to any carcinogenic pesticide (adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR): 2.83, 95% CI: 1.67-4.82), diuron (Single-pesticide model, adjusted (OR): 2.38, 95% CI: 1.57-3.60), phosmet (OR: 2.10, 95% CI: 1.46-3.02), kresoxim-methyl (OR: 1.77, 95% CI: 1.14-2.75), and propanil (OR: 2.58, 95% CI: 1.44-4.63). Analyses based on chemical classes showed elevated risks for the group of 2,6-dinitroanilines (OR: 2.50, 95% CI: 1.56-3.99), anilides (OR: 2.16, 95% CI: 1.38-3.36), and ureas (OR: 2.18, 95% CI: 1.42-3.34).

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that in rural areas of California exposure to certain pesticides or pesticide classes during pregnancy due to residential proximity to agricultural applications may increase the risk of childhood ALL and AML. Future studies into the mechanisms of carcinogenicity of these pesticides may be beneficial.

Keywords: Agriculture; Ambient exposure; Childhood leukemia; Pesticide; Pregnancy.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

Adult
California / epidemiology
Case-Control Studies
Child, Preschool
Female
Humans
Infant
Infant, Newborn
Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / epidemiology*
Male
Maternal Exposure
Maternal-Fetal Exchange
Pesticides*
Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / epidemiology*
Pregnancy
Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects*
Young Adult

Substances

Pesticides

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding